Re-Woodworking: Revisiting Fundamental Practice
Re-Woodworking: A Terrible Pun for a Great Practice
Growing up, I had some key sporting hobbies and was actually quite good at them. As part of those sports, practicing and refining the fundamentals was a vital part of improving. Interestingly, photography is no different, and neither is mental health and wellbeing. Fundamental Practice is key to survival!
So, last week I revisited some older woodland photographs that I took earlier in the year. It was a bit of “Re-Woodworking,” if you will excuse my terrible attempt at a pun! These are all shots of ordinary, local places that have grown in meaning for me over the past few years.
From Snapshots to Intentional Art
When I originally processed these images, they were well and truly “taken.” However, I now consider them “made.” My goal is to invite the viewer to travel into the frame rather than bouncing around trying to find what to look at. These are no longer just snapshots; instead, they have a clear intention.
As I’ve mentioned before, art is subjective and our creative paths are unique. Even so, I take this intentionality as a sign that my technical skills have improved compared to even six months ago.
An example might be this shot of a woodland path winding gently through dense pine trees. I walk this path almost every day, and especially when it’s nice weather! It has become unremarkable to me because of my near-daily visits, but objectively it is a beautiful spot.
I tried here, to use the path as a sort of leading line into the photograph, through the bridge and off to the horizon line. I intentionally framed the picture so the end of the path can’t be seen to inject a little bit of mystery!
Technical Specs:
Shot on Canon EOS R8
14-35mm F4 USM L
1/400 sec at f9.0 and ISO 1600
The Parallel of Wellbeing
In the context of mental health, revisiting and sharpening your fundamentals can be life-changing. For instance, getting your grounding practices well-drilled or having a routine to stimulate the senses provides a necessary safety net. I feel a deep parallel between my mental wellbeing and these images. The glass-pooled reflections of Waggoners Wells remind me of times when my mood slips away, and I can’t tell which way is up.
My original edit (which I am too embarrassed to show here…) was HIGHLY saturated and the colours looked unnatural – far too orange and the green – yuck. Looked like alien vomit.
Now we can hopefully agree that the colours are far more natural, and actually compared to a reference image taken on my phone at the time, the colours are closely representative of what I actually saw on the day.
Other processes were simplified in the edit too – far less local masking to achieve subtle but impactful points of interest in the image. For example, the dehazing of the bottom edge foreground so you can see into the well, and the hazing at the top edge to remove distracting sky elements.
Overall, pretty pleased with this one as I felt I really went back to my fundamental practice of keeping things simple!
Technical Specs:
Shot on Canon EOS R8
28-70mm F2.8 IS STM
1/160 sec at F5.0 and ISO 2500
Similarly, the ominous tree feels like a point of no return, directing me to go back the way I came. Thankfully, the pathways bathed in light represent the way through the trees to normality. This is sometimes what it feels like living with Bipolar 2 – an abrupt stopping when you hit the low (and high) point and start to bounce back!
Technical Specs:
Shot on Canon EOS R8
14-35mm F4 USM L
1/320 sec at f8.0 and ISO 1250
Final Thoughts
Much like the waters of the well, photography can be deeply reflective if you give it a chance – especially when you revisit and don’t stray too far from your fundamental practice. Unfortunately, this is a skill many are losing thanks to smartphones and instant media. My brain, my self-esteem, and I are so grateful for this craft. It has been truly transformative for my wellbeing, and I hope it is for you too.
Much love,
P.S. if you like any of the photos in this post, why don’t you check out my Fine Art Print Shop. You can even browse other blog posts for more inspiration!